7 great film music composers

Considered the father of film music, the Austrian-American composer was the first to underscore dialogue with music. Early on he discovered how music can enhance and even transform the impact of images, such as in the classics "King Kong" (1933), "Gone With the Wind" (1939) and "Casablanca" (1942). Nominated 24 times for an Oscar, Steiner was awarded the distinction three times.

Of Jewish background, the composer emigrated from Austria to the US in 1934 and soon set standards for Hollywood film music. Generously paid by Warner Bros. Studios, he was able to choose his own projects. Korngold devised the music to "Anthony Adverse" (1936), "The Adventures of Robin Hood" (1938) and "The Sea Hawk" (1940). He also wrote piano and orchestral works, Lieder and chamber music.

A young woman is stabbed under a shower in Alfred Hitchcock's "Psycho" — the scene rendered doubly terrifying by screeching violins. Herrmann's score in Hitchcock's "Vertigo" first conjures up a vague sense of unease, then propels the action forward at the end. The American composer's long career comprises the Orson Welles classic "Citizen Kane" (1941) and Martin Scorsese's "Taxi Driver" (1976).

The 20th Century Fox theme, one of the most familiar signature tunes ever, was actually composed for a different studio but rejected. Newman also devised the scores to "Everything About Eve" (1950) with Bette Davis and "The Seventh Year Itch" (1955) starring Marilyn Monroe. His sons, Thomas and David Newman, are also important film composers.

The Italian wrote the ultimate film music to "Once Upon a Time in the West" (1968) as well as to "Once Upon a Time in America" (1984), "The Untouchables" (1987) and over 500 other films. Quentin Tarantino used Morricone's compositions in "Inglourious Basterds" (2009) before asking him to write the original score for "The Hateful Eight" (2015).

The Hollywood-based German took the Oscar for the music to "Lion King" in 1995 and has been nominated for the distinction 10 times. His amalgamation of synthesizer and orchestral sounds was revolutionary. Zimmer wrote the music for over 150 films, including "Rain Man" (1988), "Pirates of the Caribbean" (2003, 2006, 2007 and 2011) and "Blade Runner 2049" (2017).

In 1975, he wrote the music to Steven Spielberg's "Jaws." Without his compositions, the "Indiana Jones" films (from 1981-2008), the "Star Wars" franchise (from 1977), "Superman" (1978), "E.T" (1982), "Schindler's List" (1993) and "Jurassic Park" (from 1993) would have turned out quite differently. Williams' music often works on a subconscious level before culminating in a grand finale.